Survival Instincts
by Elemental Gypsy
Summary: [HiroKai] Kai’s parental instincts are put to the test when a knife wielding maniac breaks in and stabs Hiro! Will Kai be able to fend him off long enough for the police to arrive and to keep Hiro alive?
1. Chapter 1

Title: Survival Instincts  
Summary: Kai's parental instincts are put to the test when a knife wielding maniac breaks in and stabs Hiro! Will Kai be able to fend him off long enough for the police to arrive and to keep Hiro alive?  
Pairings: Hiro/Kai  
Warnings: Yaoi. Drug addict behavior. Swearing.  
Disclaimer: Don't own Beyblade.

Ok, so I decided it's time to get off my ass (or maybe in this case, ON my ass) and get stuck into some of those requests fics. There is no specific order, just whatever inspiration comes to me first. Inspiration, it's a fickle mistress, isn't it?

Anyway, this is for BloodRedViolet, who asked me (rather politely, may I add) if I could do a Hiro/Kai fic. I'm not sure if this is what she had in mind, but it was the only thing I can think of with this pairing. So yeah, I hope you like it anyway!

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"Tyson, would you slow down?" Kai calls out as Tyson races through the market place, peeking into every single stall, Daichi not far behind him. "We've got plenty of time."

The world known Japanese team, G Revolution are currently staying in a small American town that is hosting an annual fair, an all expense paid vacation courteous of the BBA. Mr. Dickinson felt that his favorite team deserves a nice, relaxing vacation, a statement Tyson was quick to agree upon.

Unfortunately, neither Kenny nor Hilary were able to attend. Kenny had family visiting at that exact moment and Hilary was grounded because she failed her last test, a notion that shocked the hell out of everyone since she's always the one telling the guys how important it is to have an education.

Tyson simply turns to Kai, pulls down his lower eyelid and sticks out his tongue. "Nyah, don't be such a wet blanket, Kai!"

Kai sighs as he rolls his eyes towards the clear blue sky. "Why, do I bother?" he asks himself, aloud.

A chuckle and a kiss to his temple alerts Kai to a presence beside him. "Because you're a caring and thoughtful person," Hiro whispers into his ear.

An unwilling smile graces Kai's lips as Hiro wraps his arm around his shoulders and he sinks against his side. "No, it's because I'm an stupid, sentimental old fool."

Hiro laughs with good humor, knowing that his fiery lover is just jesting. "That makes the two of then."

Kai rests his head against Hiro's shoulder and lets his eyes slip close, for once taking the time to simply enjoy each other's company and not have to worry about an upcoming beybattle.

It's almost hard to believe, but they've been together for over six months now. And the fact that Kai loves someone so much and have that love returned, is utterly amazing. Who knew he was capable of something like this?

They've always held an attraction towards each other, but never realized this. Hiro being a hard-head mule and Kai being equally stubborn with an unhealthy amount of naivety. At first they had found the other to be the most annoying person they have ever met on the face of this planet. However, after getting stuck in a lift, in the dark, they got talking and realized that they were actually attracted to each other. And that scared the hell out of them!

It might have scared them, but it nearly gave everyone else heart attacks when they came out about their relationship. It took some getting use to, Kai even more so. But six months on, it seems like they've been together forever.

Slowly, Kai lets his eyes wander open and he tilts his head to the side just a little to keep an eye out for him teammates, knowing all too well how easily they tend to get themselves into trouble.

Tyson is still running around like a headless chicken, wanting so desperately to look at everything at once. It's like he wants to see everything before everyone else does, in case he finds something really cool. That way, he can boast that he found it first.

Daichi is mimicking his every move, but only because he sees it as some sort of competition with the older teen. He suddenly stops, however, the moment his gazes falls upon one of those novelty drinking birds. He watches with eyes wide in wonderment as the long neck bird repeatedly lowers it's beak into a glass of water before springing back up right. He watches in a daze, his head slowly starting to move with the drinking bird.

A look of amusement graces Kai's face and he nudges Hiro's side, pointing over to the small redhead. Hiro raises an eyebrow.

"We should buy one," Hiro jokes but Kai is seriously thinking about it. He could use it whenever he wants, or needs, to keep Daichi busy. Hmm, wonder what would happen if he sees a lava lamp?

As if reading his mind, Hiro slips his finger under Kai's chin to tilt his head back and place a kiss to his lips. "The novelty probably wouldn't last long."

Kai finds himself agreeing. "He does have a short attention span."

Resting his head on Hiro's shoulder once again, Kai continues keeping a look out on the others. Ray is taking a more leisurely pace through the fair, the friendly neko speaking with just about anyone he meets. Though not as enthusiastic as Tyson or Daichi, Ray is perhaps the one who is enjoying this vacation more than anyone. This is exactly what he wants. A chance to experience things in the real world. The chance to experience different cultures in different countries. This neko's appetite for knowledge is insatiable.

Finally, Kai's eyes fall unto Max and immediately, they fill with concern. The young blonde seems to be dawdling behind the others, looking very lethargic. His eyes are gazing downwards, at the ground before him. Only every now and again he manages to tear his eyes away from the earth to look at the stalls lining the streets. A force smile graces his lips as he tries to happily reply to people who speak with him.

Kai subconsciously turns to press himself further against Hiro's side, his hand moving to grasps the material of his shirt. He begins to wander that perhaps Max is getting bored. Or maybe he's just feeling tired. It is going to get dark soon, maybe they should head back inside.

From the corner of his eye, Kai notices a scraggly look stranger and he feels a shiver race down his spine. And he doesn't know why. Maybe it's the way he seems to be just staring at his teammates and ultimately, at him.

Ignoring the unease feeling that is growing in his chest, Kai squints at the unsavory man and frowns. The guy looks completely out of it. He's sitting with his back against the wall, in a small alleyway between two old buildings. He head is at an uncomfortable angle as he watches with unblinking eyes.

Suddenly, the man climbs to his feet, his white, glassy eyes staring directly at Kai, never wavering for a moment. Kai immediately feels his body become tense as he discreetly, from the corner of his eyes, locate where everyone is at.

Good. Tyson, Max, Ray and Daichi are all standing off behind him, unaware of this man.

"Is there something wrong?" Hiro asks, picking up on Kai's unease, glancing down with concern abundant in his expression at the teen in his arms.

"That guy over there is staring at us," Kai murmurs to him, moving to push himself against Hiro's chest as he glares silent daggers at the approaching stranger, professionally hiding his unease from the outside world.

Hiro immediately places his arms around Kai's back, holding him in a protective embrace, as his eyes dart in the direction Kai is looking in. He frowns as what appears to be a drunkard or a druggo stumbling his way towards them.

He can see why Kai is feeling uneasy. This guy looks like trouble.

"What do you want?" Hiro asks, his glare lethal and his voice dangerous.

However, they have little effect of the guy who simply stops before them and stares at Kai with a slack-jaw and an unnerving gaze.

Kai seriously doesn't like the way this guy is staring at him and the urge to either punch him or kick him in the head is almost overwhelming. He hears a small growl escape Hiro's throat and realizes that Hiro, too, is debating which method of ass-kicking should he use.

Suddenly, the guy lunges forward, grabbing Kai painfully by the shoulder and rips him right of Hiro's grip, catching the two immediately off guard. Kai, however, soon recovers and tries to release himself from this weirdoes' grip.

"You…" the guy mutters and Kai knots his brow in confusion. Is this guy drunk, or something else? Although, he can't small alcohol on him, he can certainly smell something else. And is it disgusting. It's enough to make him gag.

"Kai!" The others cry out in alarm and they quickly gather around the impending scuffle.

"Hey!" Hiro snarls dangerously, grabbing the guy roughly by the arm and pulling him away from Kai, who immediately jumps back, his hand moving to rub the growing red mark on his shoulder. The man spins around, twisting himself from Hiro's grip and stumbles back a few steps, appearing to be in some sort of a daze.

"You're one of them," he slurs while muttering something incoherent under his breathe. A sense of fear spreads across his drawn and pale face, taking a few more steps backwards before staggering off.

"Ugh," Hiro spits with disgust as the man stumbles away, tripping over the street gutter, but managing to stay on his feet. "Completely ruined the afternoon."

"Yeah," Kai says as he breathes a small, silent sigh of relief. "It's getting late, anyway. Lets head back inside."

Although they don't particular want to, the others agree. As the small group start their journey to the sanctuary of their rental house, Kai glances over his shoulder, his feeling of unease lessening, but not disappearing altogether. He has a bad feeling that something terrible will happen.

Kai moves to quicken his pace to walk beside Hiro, promptly slipping his head in his.

"I'm just being paranoid," Kai whispers to himself.

* * *

Tada, one chapter done. Actually got inspiration while channel surfing late one night and I, of course, spent the next few hours jotting this down. Didn't get much sleep.

Please review.


	2. Chapter 2

Reviews: Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed, added this story to their favorite lists and alert lists! -_Huggles everyone-_

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Walking through the house, Kai reaches the door that leads into the lounge room. They are currently staying in a five bedroom house, once again courtesy of the BBA. The house is a rather large single level house, more than enough room for everyone. Especially for when Kai and Hiro simply want to spend some time alone. 

That's why they sharing the only bedroom near the front of the house while everyone else is near the back.

Kai pauses to rub his shoulder subconsciously. It no longer hurts, but the unease he felt earlier today lingers. Although, he does feel slightly better being inside.

He places his hand on the door handle, but before he turns the handle and pushes the door open, he draws in a deep breath, holding it while he counts to five and then releases it. With a determine look on his face, he pushes the door open and steps inside.

"Tyson, Max, Daichi, Ray, off to bed all of you." Kai says the moment he steps into the room. Groans and protests is Kai's only and foremost answer. He stands by the door with his hands on his hips, glaring at the small group.

He shakes his head, knowing all to well that this was coming. It happens every night.

"It's late," he tells them over the protests, his gaze subconsciously lingering on the only blonde. "And Max looks about ready to drop off."

Forcing himself up off the reclining chair, Ray yawns as he walks over to Max and helps the small blond to his feet. "Yeah, alright. Come on, Max, before you fall asleep on your feet."

The small blond nods and rubs his eye with his fist as Ray wraps his arm around his shoulder as a guide. Kai squints his eyes as the two leaves the room. He's not entirely sure, but he believes that Max might be coming down with a cold or some sort of illness. He is a little too pale to his liken.

"Fine," Tyson mutters as he turns away from Hiro, shoving something into his pocket. "You're suppose to stay up late when on holiday."

Kai rolls his eyes towards the ceiling as a sigh of annoyance escape his lips. He's been waiting for that. "Yes," he stresses slowly. "however, you're going on a field trip tomorrow, aren't you? Don't want to miss it, do you?"

"Yeah, yeah," Tyson waves his hand at Kai, showing that he is only half listening and he climbs to his feet. "I'm going. Come on Daichi."

The small redhead nods his head and jumps off the couch. He quickens his pace to walk in front of Tyson, who in turn quickens his own pace causing Daichi to walk faster. Soon, an all out race to the bedroom is one, both teens trying their hardest to beat the other.

Kai eyes the two as they leave, his eyes narrowing in suspicion at Tyson. He feels that the younger Granger brother is hiding something, something that Hiro is no doubtable in on.

Both Hiro and Tyson have been acting strangely lately, especially Tyson. For a few days now, he has been looking smugly at Kai, giving him a look that says in a childish, sing-song voice; "I know something you don't know."

And it's driving Kai nuts!

Hiro chuckles as he moves to stand behind Kai, wrapping him up in his arms and softly kisses the top of his head. "You're such a mother hen."

"Do you want to sleep on the couch tonight?" Kai asks with a small pout.

"I'll be good," Hiro promises as he turns Kai around in his arms, pulling him into his chest. Kai sinks into the embrace and nestles his head under Hiro's chin. Whenever he is in Hiro's arms like this, Kai has often felt guilty about all the fights that had over the years before coming together. But whenever Hiro kisses him, the memories fade.

Running his fingers through Kai's hair, Hiro slowly tilts his head back to place a loving kiss on his lips. Sighing, Kai lifts his arms and wraps them around Hiro's neck, allowing him to deepen the kiss. Feeling Hiro run his tongue over his bottom lip, Kai parts his lips on a moan, clinging tighter onto Hiro's strong and hard frame.

Now that the children have gone to bed, the two elders trade uninterrupted kisses for an unknown amount of time, simply losing themselves in the sensation and feel of one another.

"We better go to bed too," Kai whispers against his chest. He, however, rolls his eyes towards the heavens once again when Hiro slips a hand under his shirt. "To sleep, Hiro. Nothing more."

Hiro chuckles again, but Kai could tell that the laugh is hiding his disappointment. Kai makes a mental note to make it up to him later. They have only just started expressong their love in more intimate ways a month ago. And to Kai, it was the most exhilarating and pleasurable thing he has ever experienced in his entire life.

He still remembers there first night together, making love. He was so nervous, while Hiro so was patient and loving.

But what surprised him the most was that their time together was uninterrupted, which in itself, is a miracle. He must've bride the younger teens with something.

Kai shakes his head, ridding himself of his thoughts and takes Hiro's hand in his. They make their way through the house, Kai pausing for a few minutes to check on the younger bladers. A habit he has picked up over the years while staying with this team of misfits. They sometimes get themselves into trouble without even trying!

His eyes staying on Max a little longer than normal. There is something not quite right about that boy. His nose wrinkles in discomfort as he mutters something and rolls over in his sleep.

Over the years they've spent together, Kai has grown to be a sort of a brother or parent to Max. He has seen the effects of his parents failed marriage has done to him, even though he hides it well behind a smile. His father has tried to be there for his son as much as he can., but, he has a business he needs to take care of. Despite gaining custody of Max, he gets no financial help from his estranged wife, Judy.

_Judy. _Kai feels his eye twitch.

He can't stand that woman. He has never really spoken to her, but, he doesn't like her from the first moment he laid eyes on her. She doesn't care about Max. She treats him more like a trophy than her own flesh and blood. And she never seems to have time for Max anymore. Max pretends that it doesn't hurt when she tells him she won't be visiting when she promised. But Kai can tell it hurts him. Hurts him more than anything.

There was this one time that it hurt him the most. It was Christmas and Judy promised to be home for the holidays. It was all Max talked about and Kai has never seen him so excited. However, his excitement was short lived. On Christmas eve she rang him and said that she has something important to do at work and won't be coming. Poor Max cried himself to sleep afterwards. With just one phone call, she ruined his Christmas.

It was at that moment that Kai decided to be there for him when his father couldn't be. His mother obviously doesn't care that much for him. So he took on the role of a parent to the small blond, when his father had to work. A move that Max's father is grateful for and sadden about.

"Is something wrong?" Hiro whispers in his ear, making in shiver slightly.

"It's probably nothing," Kai answers, pulling him towards their bedroom.

------------------------

Kai sighs softly in his sleep and rolls over onto his side, nuzzling his cheek further into the pillow. He soon settles down and lies still, a deep sigh escaping his lips. Beside him, Hiro too rolls over in his sleep and wraps his arms around Kai's waist, unconsciously pulling him closer. A small smile appears on Kai's lips as he settles down.

However, a few moments later, Kai suddenly jolt awake by a gentle touch on his shoulder.

"What?" he mumbles, peering out into the darkness trying to see through the sleepy haze. "Max? What's wrong?"

The small blond sniffles and rubs his eye. "I feel sick," he whimpers.

Kai immediately sits up in bed, pulling out of Hiro's arms, who doesn't wake. He slips out of bed to his feet and opens his arms for Max to lean into as he whimpers again. Kai places a hand on Max's forehead and winces slightly. He's burning up!

"It'll be alright," Kai coos, helping Max to stand up on his own and guides him back his room. He helps him to lie down and knees next to the bed. "I'll be right back. I'm just going to get you some aspirin and something to drink, ok?"

Max nods tearfully and Kai kisses his forehead before quickly climbing to his feet and heading out the door. He races back into his bedroom to find his mandatory bottle of heavy duty aspirin.

Hiro moans softly and lifts his head off the pillow to peer sleepily at Kai. "Kai?" he says, his voice slurring slightly from not truly gaining consciousness yet. "What's wrong?"

"Go back to sleep," Kai tells him and kisses his head. "Max isn't feeling well, but I'll take care of him."

"Is he alright?"

"He has a fever. He's probably getting a cold. I'll keep him home tomorrow. Go back to sleep."

Hiro lets his head drop back onto the pillow and he is out like a light. Kai smiles softly and shakes his head. He grabs his precious bottle and heads back to Max. He makes a quick detour to the kitchen to get a glass of water, a basin of cold water and a soft cloth. He quietly walks into the bedroom and kneels next to Max again, placing the basin on the floor. Max whimpers again and rolls over to face Kai.

"Here, take this," Kai says as he helps him to sit up. "It'll make you feel better."

Max does what he's told and lays back down. Kai places a cool moisten cloth on his forehead and sits on the edge of his bed, holding it in place with his hand. Max lays still, his chest rising and falling in rhythm to his breathing.

"I miss mum, sometimes," Max whispers suddenly, a little bit delirious from the fever. "I don't remember much of her at home though."

Kai's eyes soften, a feeling of sympathy growing in his chest. As well as a little bit of anger.

"But," Max continues to mumble as he peers out through one eye. "It doesn't hurt anymore. Do you know why, Kai?"

Kai finds himself tilting his head to the side in question. "Why, Maxie?"

Max smiles through his fever, his eyes slipping close. "Because you're here. You've done more for me than mum ever has."

Kai's eyes widen in surprise, feeling, for once, speechless.

Max sighs as he turns his head slightly to the side and nuzzles his cheek into the pillos. "Goodnight, Kai."

With his eyes shimmering with a strange emotion, Kai watches as Max drifts off to sleep, a small smile on his face. "Goodnight, Max."

And Kai stays there, by his side, watching over him all night.

The morning is peaceful, though early.

Suddenly, a loud noise awakens Kai from his sleep. He lifts his head up to gaze sleepily at his surroundings. During the night, he had climbed onto Max's bed and fallen asleep. He looks down at Max who is nestled next to him, and feels his forehead. He breathes a sigh of relief. It seems that the fever has broken.

As Kai is about to lay his head back down, he hears that noise again. Someone must be up, watching TV. It sounds like someone cursing. Or fighting. Or something else…

A feeling of unease soon appears in Kai's chest, causing his heart to thump loudly in his ears. Fear makes an appearance, but he doesn't know why. All he knows is that he has a feeling of dread and the urge to check it out.

Carefully, Kai climbs off Max's bed and wanders into the hall silently. He tilts his head to the side in confusion. The sound is coming from his bed room. And it sounds like two people cussing up a storm. Quietly, he pushes the door open and freezes in his tracks, his eyes wide in shock.

Hiro is laying in bed, the bed sheets in disarray all around him, with blood splatters on those sheets. However, what scares him the most is that his boyfriend is trying to fend of a knife wielding maniac who is leaning over him, thrashing violently, trying to slit his throat!

An unbelievable sense of anger floods Kai's entire being. And without a second thought to his own safety, Kai dashes into the room.

"Let him go!"

* * *

Wo! Second chapter done! The next chapter will definitely be action packed. I'll try to make it as realistic as I can. It won't be much fun if Kai just launches his blade at the guys head and knocks him out, will it? 

Please review.


	3. Chapter 3

Reviews: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! Now, it's time for some action. Enjoy!

Warning: Just a bit of swearing.

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Rolling over onto his side, Hiro buries his face into his pillow, consciousness starting to take a hold of him. He feels the bed suddenly shift, like someone jumping onto the bed and figures that it's one of the children, as he and Kai so lovingly call them. He squeezes his eyes shut, not wanting to get up.

Suddenly a jagged, searing pain explodes in his side and he immediately convulses forward, his hands grasping at his side. He feels a warm, thick liquid seeping through his fingers and he immediately knows that it's blood.

As intense pain rocks his body Hiro manages to look up to his left and sees a tall, sickly looking guy for a split second before an arm snakes around his neck, pulling him into a head lock, the knife now hovering just above his heart.

"Shit!" Hiro snarls as he throws his hand out and grabs the arm that is holding the knife. The guy is thrashing about, muttering obscenities under his breath, getting louder and louder. "Let the fuck go of me!" he snarls again.

"They're going to kill me!" The guy yells. "They're going to kill me so I have to kill you!"

Hiro curses under his breath at the incoherent nonsense the man is spewing from his mouth. He soon realizes that this intruder will no doubt be high on a deadly cocktail of drugs. Which will explain his inhumane strength.

As the two men struggle, Hiro is losing blood by the second and he can feel himself growing weaker and weaker. He needs to hamper the flow of blood, but he can't do anything but hold the knife at bay.

Suddenly, the guy starts thrashing more violently and somehow manages to push Hiro down on to the bed, his back against the sheets so now he is looking at him face to face, the knife just hovering above his throat. Hiro looks up into the man's eyes. They are unlike anything he has seen before. Large and white. He looks like a man without a strip of sanity left.

Then, he realizes that this guy is the same as the one he pulled off Kai yesterday! Was he here looking for Kai?

Hiro tightens his grip on the knife, vowing not to let this guy anywhere near Kai.

Suddenly he hears the door open and Hiro's heart speeds up in fear.

"Let him go!"

Hiro's eyes widen. It's Kai!

Before Hiro has a chance to yell at Kai to stop, to get away before he gets hurt too, Kai jumps onto the bed behind the maniac and wraps an arm around his neck, causing him to choke. The guy pulls back slightly in surprise, causing Hiro to fall off the bed and land painfully on the floor, blood soak sheets following. Hiro winces in pain and glances over his shoulder to see that Kai has taken his place. Kai has his back to the bed, with his hand around the arm with the knife. He also has his knee on the guy's chest, pushing him back.

"I'll kill you! I'll kill you!" The guys starts to scream again, his eyes a vacant void of sanity, thrashing the knife that much closer to Kai's chest. But because Kai has a knee to his chest and a hand on the knife, all he slashes is air.

_He's trying to kill him,_ Hiro inwardly panic as he tries to stand up, to move, to do anything! But, he's losing too much blood and without warning his eyesight starts to go blurry, until everything goes black.

Kai tilts his head to the side to avoid the knife that embeds itself into the mattress next to his head and notices that Hiro has fallen unconscious, a large dark stain on his clothing.

_No…_

Kai tries to push the knife wielding stranger back, but he's far too strong. And tall. He has to be six foot something, while Kai is lucky to be four foot something. He looks up at him and into his eyes. He can see nothing but madness in those depths, glassy and vacant. Wide, white and looking very afraid. The strength he has possesses must be contributed by adrenaline. And god knows what else.

"Die! Die!" he keeps screaming. "They'll kill me so just die!"

Kai snarls as he tightens his grip around the arm with the knife, digging his nails into the dirty skin, causing the older man to wince for a second. He needs to get the knife away from him. He also needs to get some medical treatment for Hiro. Since he has fallen unconscious, it means that he is losing quite a bit of blood. He doesn't have much time left…

No. No knife wielding maniac is going to take Hiro away from him.

"Kai? Hiro?" Ray's voice drifts into the room. The intruder stops struggling for a moment and stares at the door. A sleeplike daze, Ray pops his head in, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"What's going on?" he asks with a slur in his speech.

However, his eyes widen considerably when he sees that his team captain is laying on a bed surrounded by blood, fighting off a guy he doesn't quite recognize, who's trying to stab him with a long steel knife. "Oh, shit!"

"Ray!" Kai yells over to him, struggling to keep the guy in place, stopping him from jumping off the bed and attacking Ray. "Call the police and get an ambulance here, now!"

Ray hesitates for a moment. He gazes at Kai, fear clearly seen in his golden eyes. The intruder tries to jump off Kai and lunge at Ray, but the strong grip on his arm and the ever struggling Kai under him makes it difficult to get his balance.

"What are you waiting for?!" Kai hisses. "Go!"

Ray nods once, before he turns and races down the hallway, bolting into the kitchen where the phone is. With trembling hands he picks the phone off the cradle and punches in the emergency number. He places the earpiece to his ear and starts pacing, his eyes staring at the door.

"Come on," he mutters, urging the phone to hurry up and ring. He hears a click. "Yes!"

"All lines are busy at the moment." Came an automatic voice on the other end of the line. "Please hold."

Ray pulls the phone away from his ear and stares at it in disbelief. It can't be possible. This is a life or death situation. Surely, this is some sort of a joke.

Unfortunately, it isn't.

"They put me on hold?!" He holds the phone in a death grip, his knuckles turning white as he begins pacing the room. "Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit," he mumbles over again. "What should I do?"

Ray wonders if he should go to a neighbor for help, but the chances are, even if he's using their phone, he'll still be put on hold.

"Come on," he urges as he tries the phone again.

Daichi snaps his eyes open, a strange noise startling him from his sleep. It sounds like something heavy falling to the floor with a thud. He wearily lifts his head up off the pillow and grumbles about what he wants for breakfast. He figures that Kai must be up and about, getting things ready for today. And hopefully, making breakfast. He likes it when Kai cooks, he's actually really good at.

"Hmm, maybe I can get him to make me chocolate chip pancakes," he mumbles sleepily, licking his lips as he pats his stomach in anticipation.

He, however, leaps to his feet when he hears Kai scream something at someone. It sounded like Kai is yelling at Ray to leave or something. He blinks slowly and walks over to the door. He hopes Kai and Ray aren't fighting. It's not often that the two of them fight, only when it's concerning Ray's self-training methods. Some days he would train himself to exhaustion and Kai would tell him off.

Kai can train until his dead on his feet, but, he absolutely forbids anyone from doing so. When reminded of that little fact, all he would say is, "Do as I say, not as I do". Ray would often sneer that that was awfully hypocritical and Kai would wholeheartedly agree, much to the neko's annoyance.

Daichi eases his way down the hall as he hears another noise, which sounds like Kai snarling something in what he can only assume is his native tongue. "Kai?" he says timidly as he pops his head into his room.

Kai eyes widen considerably when he hears a familiar voice. He turns his gaze to the doorway, but is still trying to push the towering stranger off him. "Daichi?"

"Kai!" he yells as he points a finger at the man. "What's going on here?!"

"Get out of here, Daichi!"

The older man looks at Daichi, his eyes wide with a hint of insanity and fear in them. Kai tries to resume his struggling to distract, but the stranger looks down at him completely still for a moment, then suddenly he effortlessly leaps away from him, heading for the door, towards Daichi.

Daichi freezes in fear at the towering man. "Max! Run!" Kai yells at him, snapping him out of his stupor. He turns on his heel and bolts towards his room, just as the intruder stumbles out of the room, crushing into the wall, sending photo frames smashing to the floor. He scrambles to his feet and chases after the small redhead, stumbling and tripping over his own two feet.

Kai manages disentangles himself from the bloody sheets. As soon as he's on his feet, he rips the sheets off the bed, tearing them in half and stumbling over to Hiro.

"You're not allow to die on me, Hiro," Kai tells his unconscious boyfriend as he carefully lays him on the side and using the bed sheets as bandages, he wraps up the wound in Hiro's side as best and as quickly as he can. He props Hiro up against the wall, leaning on his side. He places a quick kiss to his lips before leaping to he feet and bolting out of the room as well. "Daichi!"

Daichi scrambles into his room and closes the door, pressing his back against the wooden structure. There is no lock for this door. So, upon hearing the angry footsteps outside his door, he does the first thing he can think of.

Hide.

He moves away from the door just as it flings open violently and he slips under the bed. He pushes himself up against the wall and squeezes his eyes shut in fear. He covers his head in his hands just as the insane man dropped to the floor, on his hands and knees, a fearful sneer on his lips and tries to slash at him with his knife.

Fortunately, he isn't able to reach him. "Get out here!" he demands.

"Leave me alone," Daichi whimpers, tears following freely from his eyes. He tries to push himself closer to the wall in an effort to limit the distance between him and the knife. If only he could get his hand on his Beyblade, Strata Dragoon would protect him. "Get lost!"

"You little shit!" he yells, thrashing the knife even more wildly. "I'll kill you!"

Suddenly, the man pushes himself up off the floor and bolts out of the room. Several long and agonizing moments later Kai appears on his knees, his clothes torn and hanging off his slender frame. "Daichi!"

"Kai!" Daichi says, happy to see him as he moves to get out.

Kai nods and then shushes him, pushing him back under the bed. "No, stay there. You're safe here."

Daichi nods and pushes himself back against the wall. He squeezes his eyes shut again. "I'm scared."

"It'll be over soon," Kai promises. He then jumps to his feet again and closes the door. He rushes towards the other end of the house, where the last two bedrooms are and the kitchen.

"Kai!" It's Ray and he has Tyson behind him, who is really starting to panic. "I can't get through! They keep putting me on hold!"

"Go to my bedroom and keep trying," Kai grabs his shoulder and practically throws him towards the other end of the house. "Grab Daichi on your way. He's in his room, hiding. Get an ambulance too. Hiro needs help, now! I have to find this lunatic before he hurts anyone else."

Ray nods, knowing that this is not the time to argue. "Be careful!" He grabs the portable phone and runs towards the main bedroom.

"Where is he?" Kai mumbles to himself. He then hears a sickening, terrifying scream. "Shit!"

* * *

Wo, a cliffhanger. I hope you like it! What's going to happen next, hmm? Just have to wait and see :3.

Please review.


	4. Chapter 4

Reviews: Thanks to everyone who reviewed!! And here we are, even more action. Enjoy!

Chapter 4.

* * *

A loud noise and several voices cursing violently causes Max to awaken from his deep sleep, his head slightly throbbing from a headache. He rolls over onto his back and notices that Kai is no longer here, but the wet cloth Kai placed on his forehead during the night still is which tells him that Kai stayed with him all night.

A small smile spreads across Max's lips at the thought, but then a loud crash causes him to wince in pain. All the noise isn't helping his headache one bit. The guys couldn't possibly be arguing with each this early in the morning, could they?

Suddenly, the door flies open and Max sits up in bed, his eyes a little blurry from the headache.

"What's all the noise about?" Max whimpers as he rubs his eyes. He receives no answer and when he finally manages to clear his blurry vision with a few long blinks, Max finds himself staring at a guy less than familiar.

"You're one of them, aren't you?" the stranger mutters, his whole entire body flinching and twitching.

"What the hell?" Max mutters as he scrambles out of bed. "You're the guy from yesterday. How did you get in here?"

The guy gives one last twitch before he suddenly lunges forward, painfully grabbing Max by the arm, spinning him around and pulling him back into his chest, placing the knife against his neck. Max releases a startle cry for help, whimpering as tears spring to his eyes.

"Stop it! Let go!"

"Max!"

Kai suddenly appears in the doorway, leaning against the door frame as he breathes heavily. His clothes are torn and he has long red scratches over his entire body. His eyes widen in alarm, an expression of fear spreading across his face.

"Drop him!" Kai demands, dashing into the room. But the guy manages to step around him, momentarily taking the knife away from Max's neck to slash violently at Kai, this time actually striking Kai on the shoulder blade, immediately cutting the skin open and blood begins to seep out. The man then runs outside the room, and heads into another room.

But it's the bathroom, with only one way out and in and Kai is blocking it. Kai breathes heavily as he leans against the door frame, nothing but anger on his face. The wound on his back doesn't seem to be bothering him too much at this point in time.

The guy spins around and presses the knife harder against Max's neck. "Don't come any closer! I'll kill him!"

---------------------

"I managed to get a hold of the police!" Ray tells everyone in the small room. "But we need to get out of here!"

"But, what about Kai?" Tyson asks from his spot next to Hiro. The younger Granger heard a commotion but thought nothing of it, and stumbled into the kitchen looking for food, instead finding a panicky Ray, cursing in his native tongue at the phone. "And Max isn't here either."

"I…" Ray stutters, his mind going blank as what he should do. Kai needs help, fighting this guy off, but if they interfere, they will most likely be more of an hindrance than a help. And Max, who knows what condition he's in…

"Tyson…"

Immediately, Tyson turns his attention to his older brother, a hint of relief growing in his chest in knowing that his brother is still alive. "Save your energy, Hiro."

Biting his bottom lip, Hiro manages to sit up, his back against the wall. His hands grasp at his side tightly, vaguely realizing that someone has managed to stop the flow of blood. "Kai?" Hiro mutters. "Where is he?"

This time, Tyson chews on his bottom lip, not sure whether he should tell his brother the truth. "He's…fine. He's taking care of things for us."

Suddenly, Hiro throws his hand out and grips Tyson's shoulder tightly in his hand. "Get Max and get out of here. Try and find a house around here. Just get out."

"What about you?" Ray asks, kneeling on the other side of Hiro.

"Don't bother with me," Hiro tells them bluntly. "I'd just slow you down. Get Max and get out, now."

Ray hesitates, and so does Tyson. Tyson stares into his brother's eyes, shimmering with a mixture of emotions such as fear, guilt, helplessness and anger. He only wishes there is something he can do.

Wait, there is something he can do.

"Right," Tyson mutters, squeezing his eyes shut to prevent any tears and he quickly springs to his feet. "Ray, grab Daichi and head out. Max and I will follow soon. Kai would want us out of the house so he won't have to worry about us anymore."

Ray freezes to the spot for a moment, staring at Tyson in awe in disbelief. For as long as he has known the teen, he has never seen take charge so seriously like this before.

"Right," Ray gives a sharp nod, moving to grab a hold of Daichi's arm, who in turn grips onto him, grateful for a small hint of comfort. "We'll meet up with you outside. Be quick, ok?"

"Gotcha," Tyson nods, before he turns to Hiro. "We'll meet up with you later, too, bro."

Hiro gives the three teens a small smile. "Absolutely."

-----------------------

Kai stands perfectly still, his eyes never leaving the knife that is pressing against Max's neck. He can see that Max is absolutely terrified, tears of fear rolling down his cheeks.

That's it. Enough is enough.

"If you don't hand him back to me right now, I swear to god, I will _**fucking**_ kill you myself!" Kai screams at him, punching the wall next to him, cracking the tiles in doing so.

Kai's brow furrows as he body begins to shake in anger, absolutely no fear in his entire being. He turns his eyes to the intruders face and sends him an icy glare before he strides across the room, grabbing the blade of the knife in one hand, while using the other to pull Max away.

Max stumbles a couple of steps before falling onto the floor with a thud. He quickly scrambles back to his feet, slowly edging his way to the door. He wants to run, to leave and hide, but he can't help but watch in a trance like state of fear as Kai once again struggles with this drugs fueled man.

Suddenly, the two men slip on the wet titles and they fall, crashing to the floor. Kai is in a bad position, with his back up against the intruder's chest. He keeps a tight grip on the knife, ignoring the fact that it's cutting painfully into the tender flesh of his hand and the steady stream of blood flowing down his arm. He suddenly throws his head back, hitting the guy on the chin, causing him to reel his own head back, smashing it against the hard, porcelain skin behind him. However, the suddenly blow to the head doesn't seem to effect him very much.

That's one of the disadvantages of fighting with someone high on drugs or alcohol. They won't feel anything until they come down or sober up.

Fortunately, Kai has such a high pain thresh hold and his high self control over his thoughts and emotions gives him the ability to forget about his pain and concentrate on the task at hand. Getting the knife away from this guy, getting the others to safety and most importantly, getting Hiro medical help.

He'll worry about his own needs later.

Even though he is concentrating on getting the knife away, Kai is still aware that Max is watching. The small blonde is now sitting on the ground, his back against the wall as he clutches at the material over his heart, more tears flowing down his cheeks. He's fever from last night has flared up again, disabling him from thinking straight.

"Max," Kai says as calmly as he can, trying to sound as if he's in complete control of the situation. "You need to get up and head to my bedroom, ok? You'll be safe there."

Max shakes his head as his breathing starts to become erratic. "But-"

"No buts," Kai tells him firmly as he smashes his elbow against the guys head. "Go. Now!"

Still, Max doesn't move. Suddenly, Tyson appears, leaning against the doorframe, his eyes widening at the sight. Tyson looks hesitant whether he will be of any help to Kai, or merely a hindrance.

Kai notices his hesitation. "Tyson, get Max and get out of here!"

For the first time in his life, Tyson simply nods and does what Kai tells him to do. He pushes away from the door, leans down, picks Max up into his arms, disappearing from sight.

Good, the two are safe now.

Now realizing that no one else is in danger, Kai precedes to give this guy a very hard time, landing blow after blow to his head as he tries to scramble to his feet, still keeping a firm grip on the knife blade in his hand. His hand is stinging and throbbing from the sharp steel edge cutting into his hand, the blood now pooling on the floor. But he ignores it.

The guy suddenly slips on the tiles and stumbles, momentary losing his grip on the knife for only a split second. Even so, it's more than enough time for Kai to rip the knife from his grip, gaining complete control over it now.

Pushing away from the enrage man, Kai throws himself out into the hallway. He glances at the bathroom door, and notices that it doesn't have any hinges, in fact, it's a sliding door. Kai pulls the door close and will all the strength he can muster, he raises the knife over his head and embeds it into the wooden door near the wall, making it near impossible to slide it open.

The man inside tries desperate to open the door, shaking it fiercely in an attempt to shake the knife loose. But due to the knife's solid handle, he cannot open the door enough to stick his arm through. All he can do he is shake the door violently.

Breathing heavily, Kai leans his back against the wall, pausing for a moment to see if this will hold him. He soon notes by the way the man is rattling the door, it should only keep him contain for a few minutes.

Pushing away from the blood smear wall, Kai quickly walks towards his bedroom, expecting to find everyone there. Instead, he sees Hiro supporting himself against the wall, his hands grasping at his side, breathing heavily.

Hiro snaps his head towards the door when he hears a noise and immediately, relief floods his eyes when he sees that Kai is alive, but sporting a few major injuries.

Relief also fills Kai's being and he immediately makes his way over to Hiro side, Hiro pulling into a hug and leaning against him. "You shouldn't try to move," he tells him, helping Hiro over to the bed to sit down.

"I was worried about you," Hiro murmurs in reply, his hand brushing the side of Kai's face softly. "You're hurt."

"They're only flesh wounds," Kai quickly brushes him off as he moves to pull off a pillow case, tearing it into long strips. He uses one strip to wrap around the wound on his hand, realizing that this one is probably the worst out of all his injuries as he can't reach the wound on his back. "They'll heal. Where is everyone?"

"I told them to leave," Hiro explains through the pain. "They're safer out there."

Kai nods and walks over to his backpack and begins to search around. That guy is still a threat to Hiro. He can easily burst in here and finish him off. And that is something Kai isn't going to allow. He is going to stop this maniac once and for all.

Kai feels no pain, no fear, just anger. Pure, unadulterated anger. How dare this urchin off some grime encrusted street corner come bursting in here and threaten the lives of his teammates and his boyfriend.

No one hurts his lover and make-shift family and gets away with it.

"What are you doing?" Hiro asks, as he struggles to his feet.

Finding what he's looking for, Kai walks over to Hiro, kisses his lips and then pushes him down on to the bed. "I'll be right back," he says, lifting up a one-handed launcher and attaches Dranzer's blade.

"Ready, Dranzer?" Kai asks his beloved bitbeast and he feels her loving warmth flood his body in response.

Stepping out into the hallway, Kai turns to face the direction of the bathroom. As soon as he does, the bathroom door finally gives way and the guy stumbles out, looking even more out of it. He glances up the hallway, looking directly at Kai. Suddenly, he starts running straight for him, his face much like that of a snarling beast.

With his eyes glaring at the approaching danger with nothing but determination, Kai lifts up his launcher and points it straight at him. "Take care of him for me, Dranzer."

He then launches his blade.

* * *

…Cliffhanger! I know how much you love them. -_Dodges a flying chair- _Ok, maybe not so much.

Please review.


	5. Chapter 5

Reviews: Thanks to so much to everyone who reviewed.

Chapter 5.

* * *

Raising his arm straight in front of him, Kai aims his Beyblade launcher level with the intruder's head. He narrows his eyes with unwavering strength, no fear shimmering within their ruby depths.

Just cool determination to end this now.

"No one puts the lives of those I care about in danger," Kai says firmly, his expression and voice cool and collected.

He then launches Dranzer, his arm reeling back due to the whiplash of the gun launcher. Dranzer flies strong and true, glowing with a intense heat to rival that of the sun. And she hits her mark, stopping the one who's threatening her master, slamming her blade right between the eyes.

"Dranzer," Kai commands his spirit guardian. "Burn all the toxins out of his system with your sacred flames."

All time seems to stop still, the intruder's eyes widening as he stops dead in his tracks. Then, Dranzer's flames grow in intensity and engulfs him in a blinding array of light and fire, purifying his entire being with her majestic heat, successfully destroying all toxins poisoning his body.

The man screams and convulses in excruciating pain, and he begins thrashing about. But Kai remains calm, watching silently with unwavering eyes.

"That will do, Dranzer," Kai tells his faithful friend. "Let him come down on his own."

The fire and lights slowly dissipates and Dranzer moves to spin at her master's feet, still glowing warmly and bright.

Suddenly, the stranger throws his head back on a terrifying scream then slumps forward, his eyes rolling into the back of his head and he falls to the floor in a messy heap. He doesn't move, only the rise and fall of his chest indicates that he is still alive.

Kai eyes the mess in mild disgust, but lowers his launcher with a deep sigh, his body relaxing somewhat. This current danger is over now. All he needs to do is to keep Hiro alive until help arrives.

"Dranzer, watch him for me, please."

Glowing brightly in response, Dranzer appears in miniature from her blader to look at her master, concern clearly shinning in her eyes.

Kai smiles at her and raises his arm for her to perch upon. "I'll be ok, girl. Please watch him for me, ok?"

Landing on her master's arm, Dranzer hops up on to his shoulder to nuzzle his cheek tenderly with her head, making a little clicking noise with her beak. She gives him a little, feather light nip on the ear before returning to her blader to spin closely near the unconscious body.

Kai sends one last look at the man who put his loved ones in danger and a feeling of hatred appears in his chest. He wills it away, but having no sympathy for the man's current state.

True, it's the drugs fault for making him act in such a dangerous way, but he's still an idiot for even trying the illegal substances.

Stepping quietly into the room, Kai's gaze promptly lands on his lover's form on the bed. Hiro is looking deathly pale, his eyes tightly shut and the make shift bandages around his midriff is now a dark red.

"Hiro?" Kai asks in a whisper, a feeling of dread making itself known. Fortunately, Hiro's eyes open at the sound of his voice.

"Kai," Hiro winces as he tries to sit up. "What was all that noise?"

"He has finally come down from his high," Kai tells him simply, moving to sit on the bed as well, cradling Hiro's upper body against his legs. "Don't worry about him anymore."

Hiro winces again as he raises his hand to gently stroke the side of Kai's face. "Are you ok?" he asks softly.

"I'm fine, don't worry," Kai is quick to reply, taking Hiro's hand in his and kissing his palm. "The police and medics will arrive soon, so just relax."

"Kai," Hiro sighs, his eyes starting to slip close. "You're truly amazing."

"No," Kai shakes his head slowly. "I was only protecting the ones I love."

Suddenly, the noise of the front door slamming open alerts the two that police have finally arrive. Soon, uniform police officers file into the house and into the bed room, all of them yelling commands and relaying information to each other.

"We found them!"

"The suspect is currently unconscious, but alive!"

"We need a medic in here, quick!"

One of the police officers tries to converse with Kai, asking him questions, but Kai isn't paying any attention. He's keeping him gaze downwards, looking upon Hiro's face, watching to make sure he keeps breathing.

"Please be ok," Kai whispers as he runs a bloody finger over Hiro's cheek.

Only when he hears one of the officers announce that the medics have arrive does Kai lift his head. He watches as calmly as he can as the medical personnel enter the room, promptly pushing past the police.

"He has a stab wound in his side," Kai explains to them. "And he has lost a lot of blood, but I think I stopped it in time."

The medics begin to clean Hiro's injuries, covering the makeshift bandages with thick, white pressure bandages. They don't want to unwrap the wound until they get him into hospital and into surgery.

One of the medics steps away from Hiro and crouches next to Kai. "We'll take care of you," he tells him as he pulls on a clear pair of plastic gloves. He eyes Kai's hand, not seeing the large and potentially life threatening gash on Kai's back due to the way he is sitting.

"I'm fine," Kai brushes him away. "Just help Hiro."

"Your friend is going to be fine," the medic assures. "Now, just let me have a quick look at you."

"Where are the others?" Kai suddenly asks, turning his full attention to a cop standing just behind the medic trying to treat him.

"They're safe," he replies. "We have them."

Kai nods his head, thankful for the knowledge and turns his gaze to Hiro, continually brushing off the medics attempts to check him over.

Once again, the police in the room parts as a hospital bed is wheeled in. Carefully, several of the medical personnel places Hiro on a back board and lifts him onto the bed. Only when they start to wheel Hiro out of the room, does Kai bother to move. He quickly pushes past all the medical and police personnel and follows as they wheel Hiro outside in the morning light, recalling Dranzer along the way.

Although blatantly concern for Hiro, Kai notices several expressions of shock and disbelief from the personnel around him. He raises an eyebrow when the medic who was trying to look at him earlier walks over to an officer and points almost frantically at him.

The officer turns and his face suddenly turns pale. He quickly stops what he's doing and quickly makes his way over to him.

"My name is officer Daniels," the veteran cop tells Kai as he watches the medics take Hiro away in an ambulance. He curses under his breath as there is only one ambulance here at the scene at the moment. "You'll be ok, kid. Just hold on, ok?"

Kai looks at him in confusion, frowning slightly. Why would one of these cops waste his time reassuring him? He only has a few flesh wounds, his hand probably the worst. Nothing at all serious, though his shoulder is starting to hurt a bit now. And he has this feeling of something thick running down and clinging to his back. And his hand is throbbing pretty bad now.

"I know," Kai replies to the older man. "Just take care of the others, ok?"

Officer Daniels tries to make Kai sit down on the porch steps, keeping a firm, yet gentle grip on his arm. "I think you should sit down."

"Why?" Kai asks in irritation, trying to remove his arm from his grip. "I said I'm fine. Look, don't waste your time on me, just take care of the others."

"I think you should take care of yourself now," the officer tells him calmly.

"Kai!" Kai whips his head around towards the familiar voices and soon, he sees his younger teammates file out of a police car, and are currently running towards him. A sense of relief fills Kai's being when he sees that they are all ok. Though, Max is still looking pale thanks to the fever.

They make their way over to him, stopping a foot in front of him, their eyes widen in shock and fear. Kai frowns when he notices that Max isn't wearing a jumper, no doubt making his fever worse.

Ignoring the looks of concern, Kai walks over to Max and feels his forehead with his uninjured hand. "Get something warm on, now," he gently orders. "You'll make your cold worse."

Max gazes up at Kai with his big blue eyes, shimmering with tears. "Kai!" he suddenly cries, burying his face in his hands.

"What's wrong?" Kai asks, placing his hands on the blonde's shoulders, concern in his eyes once more. "Are you feeling sick?"

"Please be ok," Max sobs into his hands.

"Hey," Kai tells him softly, a reassuring smile on his lips. "They're just scratches. They don't hurt."

They are starting to sting a little now, though. And he is feeling a little light headed. But other than that he's fine. Really.

"Take it easy, Kai," Ray suddenly tells him, snaking his arm around his shoulders and trying to move him towards a police car to sit him down. "Lets sit down for a moment, ok?"

"But I'm fine," Kai insists.

"Kid, you need to sit down now!" Officer Daniels orders.

Kai opens his mouth to tell the cop off when he suddenly clutches his head, his sight becoming blurry and it's hard to think. "Why do I feel so dizzy all of a sudden?" he asks, but the only replies he receives is darkness and he feels himself falling.

* * *

Sorry, another cliffhanger. Please, please don't kill me! _-runs and hides-_

Please review.


	6. Chapter 6

Reviews: Destiny Quill, Mizuki Hikari, DancerInTheDark101, Valenciadarkness, Tenshi of Freedom, Uzumi, Blaze Queenie, Red, Nameless Little girl, BloodRedViolet, Miako6, XxSweet MitsukaixX, and KaiLover2006!!!

Here we are, chapter 6. I think there's about one more chapter to go. Enjoy!

* * *

A dull throbbing pain inside his head greets Kai as he swims through the sea of darkness, towards a fading light in the distance. Slowly, as the haze of confusion lifts, he begins to recall fragments of what has happened like a movie film showing exclusively inside his head.

A guy with a knife. Hiro being stabbed. The others in danger. Feeling lightheaded. Hiro losing consciousnesses.

Suddenly, Kai's eyes fly open and his sit bolt straight in bed. "Hiro!" A sharp pain erupts from his shoulder and Kai convulses forward, grasping at it as a hiss of pain passes his lips. "Argh."

Taking deep breathes, Kai wills the pain to subside. "My shoulder," he mutters in confusion as he slowly draws back his hand, immediately noticing a thick white bandage around his hand and wrist. He blinks and flexes his hand, wincing when pain shoots up his arm. "What happened?"

"Kai!" A familiar voice cries out in concern and an arm immediately wraps around his back, keeping him still. "Don't move too much or you'll open your stitches."

Peering through his veil of stormy gray hair to look to the right, Kai sees a pair of golden eyes looking at him in blatant concern. "Ray?"

Ray's eyes soften slightly and he nods, offering him a small smile of relief, before discreetly nodding to the other side of the bed. "He's here too."

Kai glances to the left, relaxing a little when he sees a little blonde wrapped in a thick blanket. "Max," Kai breathes, his own gaze softening when he realizes that the blonde is sleeping with his upper body on the bed, his chair as close to the bed as possible. Slowly, he lifts his hand and places it on Max's forehead. "His fever is better."

"Yeah," Ray confirms as he attempts to get Kai to lay down and rest some more. "The nurses took good care of him."

"Wait, where's Hiro?" Kai asks in concern and a hint of desperation, immediately sitting bolt straight again. "Is he ok? Where is he?"

"He'll be ok," Ray says firmly, hoping that his voice doesn't have even the slightest hint of concern. "He's resting."

Kai stares at Ray for a few silent moments, before breathing a sigh of relief and laying back down, throwing his arm over his eyes, questions floating through his mind. "How long have I been out?"

"About a day and a half," Ray says, taking a seat back down in the hospital chair beside the bed. "You lost quite a bit of blood, that's why you fainted."

"What happened to my shoulder?"

Ray tilts his head to the side in disbelief. "You don't remember?"

"I remember a bit of pain," Kai explains, removing his arm from his eyes and tenderly touches his shoulder. "But that was it."

"You were stabbed," Ray decides to tell him bluntly, knowing all too well that Kai prefers it that way. "It must have happened when you fought him off."

"I was stabbed?" Kai murmurs to himself in disbelief. "You'd think I'd remember something like that."

Ray flashes him a neko grin. "I guess all that adrenaline helped, huh?"

"I guess so," Kai's brow suddenly furrows in thought, trying to remember something. "Is my shoulder the reason why everyone was screaming at me to sit down?"

Before he can stop himself, Ray releases a short laugh. "That, and the fact that you wouldn't listen."

"Is everyone else ok?" Kai suddenly asks, once again pushing himself into a sitting position, ignoring the pain his abrupt movements causes him. "Where are they?"

"Kai, we're fine," Ray insists, placing a hand on the shoulder that isn't injured. "Please just lay back down."

"No," Kai shakes his head and slaps Ray's hand away, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. "I want to see Hiro."

"He's resting. No one is allowed to disturb him," Ray stresses, feeling a little more than annoyance at Kai's typical overly motherly and stubborn personality trait. He forcefully pushes Kai back down onto the bed and pins him there with one hand, and when he doesn't fight back, he finally realizes just how fatigued Kai really is.

Kai lays surprisingly still, staring up at him with eyes wide in shock. He opens his mouth to tell the neko off, but a small whimper from his other side causes him to stop. He glances to his left to see Max begin to stir. After a moment, he settles back down and continues sleeping. "Ray," Kai starts to say, turning his attention back to the raven hair teen.

"Please, just lay back down and get some rest," Ray cuts him off from saying another thing, his voice softer than before. "Everyone is safe and taken care of, ok?"

Not having the energy to continue this discussion further, Kai relents and nods his head, his eyes slipping close. "As long as everyone else is safe," he mutters. "But can you find a bed for Max? It couldn't be comfortable sleeping there."

Ray practically beam with relief, a smile gracing his features. "Ok. I'll see you later," he whispers and soon after those words leave his mouth, Kai falls asleep. He gently pulls the bed sheets up to Kai's chest before carefully bundling Max into his arms and leaving the room.

Max will be upset when he wakes up and finds that he's no longer is Kai's room, but what Kai's says, goes.

Besides, he rather deal with a cranky Max than a cranky Kai any day of the week.

------------------

Carefully opening the door of his room, Kai pops his head out, listening for any signs of life. But more specifically, any signs of life that will stop him from doing what he has to do. It's now completely dark and Kai can only estimate that it's approximately 2am in the morning, so he should be safe.

Moving stealthy out his room and down the empty hallways, Kai begins searching the rooms with one person in mind.

Hiro.

He doesn't know where his boyfriend is, or what condition he's in, but none of that matters. He will find him, no matter what it takes or who stands in his way.

Following his instinct, Kai finds himself walking down a brightly lit hallway and he assumes that this is the ICU part of the hospital, so it would make sense that Hiro is here somewhere. He glances into the first room on his right and immediately recognizes the young man on the bed.

With his heart in his throat, Kai enters the room and moves to stand by his lover's bedside. Hiro's skin is oddly off white in color, a far cry from his usually lovely golden brown tan. A clear oxygen mask covers his face, fogging up every time he breathes out, only to disappear when he breathes in. The hospital blankets rest just below his rip cage, but thick pressure bandages can be seen, starting from his chest, disappearing under the sheets.

"Hiro…" Kai whispers, his heart breaking at the sight. Seeing his usually cocky and active boyfriend, laying unconscious and unmoving -save for the rise and fall of his chest as he breathes- on a hospital bed is almost too much.

"He'll be fine."

"Oh!" Kai gasps, a suddenly voice behind him startles him and he spins around, his un-bandaged hand clasping at the material of his clothing over his heart.

"Sorry," A man appear mid forties apologizes, running a large hand through his dark green hair that is slightly graying at the sides, a gentle smile on his lips. "Didn't mean to startle you."

Kai nods slowly as he reads the name tag on the mans white coat. Dr Anderson, the tag says and he realizes that this man must have been the one to treat Hiro. Then his eyes widen ever so slightly when he remembers his words from moments ago. "He'll be ok?"

"You're friend is very lucky," Anderson says as he steps further into the room, grapping the clipboard at the end of the bed and flips through the pages. "He lost a lot of blood, and if it wasn't for you, he would be dead right now."

The words hit Kai hard, recoiling a little from the bluntness, but he's grateful for them all the same. He hates to beat around the bush, so prefers getting straight to the point when dealing with such stressing matters. "He lost that much blood?"

"We had to give him a blood transfusion," Anderson explains, placing the clipboard back to its original position. "Fortunately, he and his brother had to same blood type."

Relief immediately fills Kai's being and he sighs, inwardly relaxing. That would explain the reason why he didn't see Tyson when he woke up the first time. He must have been resting after he gave some of his blood to Hiro. Daichi is probably looking over him.

Tyson might be a little self-centered at times, but when there's someone in need, he's more than happy to help. Especially to those he considers his family.

"That's good," Kai comments, turning his gaze back to Hiro.

Anderson nods and proceeds to leave the room. He pauses for a moment, before reaching out and ruffles Kai's hair with his hand, startling him completely. "It's also a good thing that he's as stubborn as you."

"Huh?" Kai murmurs, peering up at the older man through his hair. He wonders what he is referring to, then he remembers the few moments of people yelling at him to sit down just before he fainted. A little blush promptly taints his cheeks. "Oh, I…"

The doctor merely chuckles and drops his hand. "Anyway, I'll leave the two of you alone, shall I?"

"…Thank you," Kai whispers, bowing his head slightly in gratitude.

Doctor Anderson waves him off and heads out of the room. "Just take it easy."

"I will," Kai promises, waiting until the kindly old doctor is no longer in sight or hearing distance before turning back to the bed. He sits on the edge of the bed and carefully takes Hiro's hand in his, placing them on his lap.

"Oh, Hiro," Kai whispers softly, almost tenderly. "We get ourselves into so much trouble, don't we?"

A chuckles escapes his lips as he recalls a time when Hiro told him that trouble follows him around like a bad smell. That happened moments after they managed to defeat a street gang late one afternoon. It was before they officially started dating so instead of worrying about each other's injuries, they got into a verbal spat. It's rather comical, thinking back on it now. The way they were surrounded by twitching bodies while they were at each other's throats, blatantly worried about the other's well-being, but too stubborn to say anything other than scathing insults.

"You were right, you know? About how trouble follows me around," the tender smile on Kai's face suddenly fades away into sadness, unshed tears shimmering in his eyes. "I'm sorry. I can't help thinking that this is my fault somehow."

Then, the hand that Kai's is holding tightly squeezes back and a familiar, but raspy voice drifts to his ears. "It's not your fault."

Kai blinks, a tear rolling down his cheek. "Hiro?"

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End of chapter! Perfect place to end it, isn't it? I think so too.

Please review. And no, no death threats please.


	7. Chapter 7

Reviews: -_Glomps Nameless Little Girl, XxSweet MitsukaixX, Tenshi of Freedom, BloodRedViolet, Miako6, Ma.anda, Blaze Queenie and LunaLocket-_ Thanks so much for taking the time to review! X3

Last chapter! Thanks for all the support everyone! -_huggles again-_

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"Hiro?" Kai whispers in a hush voice, leaning a little over Hiro's bed, gazing intently upon his face. 

Slowly and with a lot of effort, Hiro opens one of his eyes and peers up at him through his lashes, a hint of a smile under the oxygen mask. Relief instantly washes over Kai, more tears appearing in his eyes.

"Don't go blaming yourself," Hiro says hoarsely.

"But…" Kai starts to protest, but ends up shaking his head instead, deciding that this is no time for the two to have a lengthily discussion. "Ok, I won't."

"Good," Hiro breathes, slowly tilting his head to the side to look at the bedside table. He peers through the darkness, his brow knotting in slightly discomfort as he searches for something.

"Do you want water?" Kai asks, once again his maternal instincts kicking in. He leans over the bed to grab a glass of water but his accidentally brushes his hand against something small and soft. "What's this?" he asks as he holds a small velvet box in the palm of his hand.

Hiro turns his gaze to the box and with a bit of effort, lifts his hand and places it over Kai's hand that is holding it. "I was hoping for a more romantic setting, but…" he says, a sense of amusement in his voice. He then opens the lid of the box, showing Kai a small silver ring sitting snuggly inside. It's a simple ring with a diamond sitting in the middle of two silver wings, encircling the precious jewel.

"What's that?" Kai asks in bewilderment, turning his exotic eyes to gaze into Hiro's own.

Despite the hospital mask over his mouth, Kai can still make out a smile on Hiro's lips. "It's an engagement ring," he explains.

"You…" Kai stutters in disbelief before pausing for a silent moment, his eyes shimmering softly with a mixture of positive emotions. "You really want me to marry you?"

Hiro finds Kai's reaction typical of his character and gives a half chuckle. "Yes."

Kai's shimmering eyes immediately soften, filling with warmth. A small chuckle escapes his lips as he leans forward and kisses Hiro on the forehead. "Of course I'll marry you."

Carefully taking the ring out of the velvet case, Kai slips it onto his ring finger, the white gold shinning perfectly against his porcelain skin. Lifting up his hand, he runs his fingers through Hiro's hair and leans forward to kiss his forehead again, pulling back after a moment to whisper gently, "So, this is what you and Tyson have been hiding from me?"

"Yes," Hiro says as he smiles softly. "It wasn't easy though. And who knew Tyson could keep a secret."

Kai continues to run his fingers soothingly through the blue strands. "He's maturing well," he says with a small hint of pride. "He's not as bad as he used to be."

"That's true," Hiro replies, his eyes slipping close and Kai thinks he's about to fall back to sleep. But he opens them again moments later, a hint of admiration shimmering within the mahogany depths. "You're amazing, you know?"

Kai instantly shakes his head, denying the notion. "You said that before."

"And I'm saying it again," Hiro continues as he takes Kai's hand in his, running his finger tips over the engagement ring that sits perfectly on his lithe finger. "You face a knife wielding stranger all on your own, without hesitation. You truly are the hero here."

Kai instantly blushes two shades darker than a tomato, bowing his head shyly to hide his eyes behind a veil of hair. "No, I'm not a hero," he insists quietly. "A hero is someone who knows about the danger and still goes in to help. All I did was react. There's nothing heroic about me."

Hiro releases a half chuckle, finding a modest Kai amusing. "Humble to a tee," he mumbles, trying his best to keep his eyes open and not succumb to the sleep he needs so much.

"Get some rest," Kai lightly orders, removing his oxygen mask for a moment to kiss his lips before placing it back. "I'll be here when you wake up."

Hiro manages a small smile before letting his eyes drift close and soon his breathing becomes regular, more peaceful than before.

And Kai stays by Hiro's side, watching through the window as the sun rises over the horizon.

--------------------

"So, when can you get out of here, Hiro?" Tyson asks impatiently towards his brother who is currently sitting up in his hospital bed. Hiro shakes his head, his blue hair swaying before his eyes. He opens his mouth to reply, but Kai beats him by lightly hitting Tyson on the back of the head with his good hand in annoyance.

"He had surgery a few days ago, Tyson," Kai scowls his soon-to-be brother-in-law, his hands resting on his hips. "He needs to recover."

Tyson rubs the back of his head where Kai hit him, a frown on his lips. "You were up and about hours after your surgery."

"Yes," Kai says, rolling his eyes towards the ceiling. "But that's because I'm a stubborn prick, ok?"

Pouting, Tyson folds his arms over his chest and mutters something under his breath. Something that sounds like he's agreeing with him, which earns him a glare from his older brother. He winces as he mutters a small apology to him but continues to pout childishly.

Kai shakes his head in mild amusement at his teammate's behavior. The corners of his lips twitches into a small smile when he sees Hiro hiss something to Tyson, but he can't make out the words. But he is pretty certain that his fiancé is merely reminding his brother to behavior better towards his soon-to-be brother-in-law.

The news of Kai's engagement to Hiro spread quickly to his remaining teammates, all thanks to Tyson of course. The moment he spotted the ring on Kai's finger, he blurted it out. He was glad that Hiro finally asked him, but took a moment to scowl his older brother for taking so long and for doing it as he laid on a hospital bed.

"You had to wait until you were almost killed, didn't you?" Tyson said to him as he poked him on the forehead to annoy him. But he had a smile on his face none-the-less.

Of course, Max was ecstatic by the news and promptly hugged him. Ray offered his congratulations to both him and Hiro, asking in the same sentence when the wedding is taking place.

Daichi on the other hand didn't understand what being engaged meant, and it took Kai about an hour to try to explain it to him. The little monkey then said that he thought they were already married.

Kids say the darnedest things, don't they?

A gentle tug on his sleeve pulls Kai out of his musings. He turns to look to his side, his gaze immediately colliding with a pair of baby blues.

"Are you sure you're ok, Kai?" Max asks with an abundance of concern in his voice and eyes.

"I'm fine," Kai smiles reassuringly at his little brother, ruffling his hair with his good hand, discreetly feeling his forehead for any sign of the fever that plague the blonde a few days ago. "They're just flesh wounds."

"Hey," Tyson suddenly pipes up, gaining everyone's attention. "Does anyone know what happened to that guy that attacked us?"

"He's still in psychiatric custody," A new voice from the doorway explains.

"Mr. Dickinson?!" The three younger members of the team cry out in surprise.

"Good morning, boys," the kindly chairman of the BBA greets as he steps into the room, his ever trusty cane in his hand. He smiles warmly and turns his gaze to the young man on the bed. "Glad to see you're doing well, Hiro."

"Thank you," Hiro returns the smile and nods his head. "I'm feeling much better."

"Good," Mr. Dickinson nods and turns his attention to the other injured youth. "And how are you, Kai?"

"I'm fine," Kai replies quickly, subconsciously straightening his posture. "Nothing I couldn't handle."

"So I can see," Mr. Dickinson chuckles and turns his gaze to the other members of G Revolution. "You boys were very lucky."

"Totally," Max pipes up immediately, turning to send Kai a beaming smile. "Thanks to Kai. He's the hero here."

Kai blinks and opens his mouth to protest, but Tyson interrupts him by pumping his fist into the air in agreement. "Yeah! Kai was awesome."

"But I didn't-" Kai blushes lightly at the praise and tries again to voice his protest, but this time Daichi interrupts him by jumping around the room in his usual enthusiasm.

"That guy was pretty scary," Daichi admits. "But he didn't seem to scare Kai at all."

"I don't want to think about what could have happened if it wasn't for Kai," Ray adds, throwing in his own two cents worth. He sends Kai a neko grin after he notices that this whole situation is flustering him to no end.

Embarrassing Kai is always so much fun.

"What's going to happen to the guy, anyway?" Kai asks, hoping to steer the conversation away from him and to more interesting matters. He walks over to Hiro's bed and sits down on the edge, immediately allowing Hiro to take his hand in his. "It's clear that he was on drugs at the time. But that's no excuse for what he did."

Ray nods his head, seconding Kai's comment. "Is he going to be charged?"

"Yes, the police have already charged him," Mr. Dickinson explains. "He had a combination of drugs and alcohol in his system. They've taken him to a psychiatric hospital so they can asset him to see if there is any underlining medical condition involved."

"Paranoid schizophrenia sounds most likely," Hiro comments from his bed, recalling the cryptic words the guy screamed at him as he tried to kill him. He shakes his head to rid himself of the memories. "Do you know what he has been charged with?"

Once again Mr. Dickinson nods his head in the affirmative. "They've charged him with break and enter. Aggravated assault. Assault with a deadly weapon. Wielding a weapon with the intent to kill. Attempted murder in the first degree. And threatening physical violence."

Tyson whistles, finding it impressive. "That's one hell of a rap sheet."

"He'll probably get a year with 12 months probation," Kai mutters darkly under his breath.

Max frowns, his eyes dimming sadly. "That's not very fair."

"Don't worry though," Kai says, instantly trying to comfort the small blonde. "He won't bother us again."

"Dude," Tyson mutters. "I hope not."

"I suppose it could be worst," Ray comments. "After all, we're lucky we don't live here. So the chances of us bumping into him again are pretty slim."

Hiro finds himself smiling at the younger member's optimism before turning his gaze to his elder. "It's all over the news, isn't it?" he asks. "None of us dared to have a look at the TV."

"It's evitable," Mr. Dickinson sighs, pulling out a white handkerchief to wipe his brow. "You are one of the most popular teams after all."

"Well, at least everyone will know how cool Kai really is," Max says, his happy puppy smile appearing on his lips.

"He's a hero alright," Ray comments, taking joy in the blush that reappears on Kai's cheeks once again.

"I'm not a hero!" Kai protest, but everyone ignores him, talking all together, telling Mr. Dickinson bits and pieces of what they know. "Oh, why do I bother?" Kai mutters to himself. "The media will be following me around even more now."

Hiro laughs and kisses his cheek, pulling him closer to him. "Don't worry. When I'm officially released from hospital, we'll go on another holiday. This time to an island beach resort somewhere. No photographers there. What do you say?"

Kai glances over to the group as he thinks silently to himself. After everything they've been through, surely nothing else too drastic will happen. After a moment he turns back to Hiro and kisses his lips lightly.

"Sounds good," he says as he snuggles against him. "I just hope we can have a nice, relaxing vacation this time."

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The end! There is no more. Kaput. Another story successfully finished. One down, about a hundred to go… 

I hope you liked reading as much as I liked writing it.

Please review.


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